LAHAD DATU, Sept 12 - The federal government will discuss with the Sabah government and Felda to enable the native customary rights (NCR) land in Tambisan to be returned to the rightful owners.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor has informed him about the residents' appeal for the return of their NCR land.

“There are about 400 acres (161.87 hectares) of NCR land in Tambisan, some of it is Felda’s, so I will ask Felda to discuss this immediately with the state government.

“I agree that the land should be returned (to the rightful owners) after proper discussions and land survey be done by the state government and Felda,” he said when launching the ‘Segalanya Felda’ Carnival in Felda Sahabat, here today.

Anwar said the governments come and go, but the residents in Tambisan have been waiting for decades for the NCR land to be returned to them.

As such, he assured the people that the MADANI Government would get it done soon.

“Like I said in Kota Konabalu, I don’t want problems to take too long to be solved. If I announced it today, the work should start next week, and within a month or two, the NCR land issue in Tambisan should be solved,” he said.

In another development, the Prime Minister approved an allocation for the establishment of a dialysis centre in Felda Sahabat to meet the demand of the residents.

He said the overall needs of the people of Sabah, including issues related to electricity and water supply, have been discussed with the state government.

“Addressing these issues requires substantial funding from the federal government, so do not listen to those with dissenting viewpoints. To ensure the welfare of Sabah’s people, good cooperation between the state and federal governments is essential,” he added. -BERNAMA